Sam Walton

English 12:30

October 9, 2008

Sam Walton was a Bargain Basement Billionaire that changed the way America shopped. He was born on March 29, 1918 during the Great Depression. His father was a land agent and had very little income to support his family. Sam’s home life was not very pleasant because of the financial state of the family. Sam did what he could to help. He would help his father at an early age with evicting families off their farms. Sam would also milk the family cow and sell the milk after football practice. Sam became youngest Eagle Scout to stay away from home. He received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from Boy Scouts of America, after saving someone’s life. Sam was very energetic and ambitious in high school he played basketball and football. He was the starting quarterback for Hickman High. Sam went on to college to find a better way to help support his family. During this time he had a paper route and also waited tables. He got the name “Hustler Walton” from the variesjobs he had to help make ends meet. Sam began in retail just a few days after graduating college with JC Penney in Iowa. He earned $75 a month as a manager trainee. He quit after eighteen months to jointhe military. He was denied entrance into the military and went to work at DuPont munitions plant. Sam later joined the military were he supervised prisoner of war camps. Sam left the military in 1945, and decided he wanted a department store. He had saved $5,000 and his father-in-law loaned him $20,000. He bought a Ben Franklin Five-and-Dime franchise store in Newport, AR. He turned around the slow business and within three years he repaid the $20,000 loan. He left Newport and moved to Bentonville, AR after, the owner of the building would not renew his lease. He owned several Five-and-Dime stores and within those businesses he started self-service and discounting. In July 1962 he started the first Wal-Mart in Rogers, Arkansas. He made $1 million in sales the first year but,...